


Just a Barmaid

by PinkLemonade1886



Series: Just a Barmaid [1]
Category: Shall We Date?: Wizardess Heart+, shall we date
Genre: F/M, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-03
Updated: 2018-08-03
Packaged: 2019-06-21 02:57:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15548073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PinkLemonade1886/pseuds/PinkLemonade1886
Summary: Leila Reizen has never had an interest in magic or wizards. For the most part, her only concern since her arrival in Gendonelune Town was her work and her family. As dissatisfied as she is with her position in life, the job keeps her afloat and it helps support her family back home. Her life has mostly been uneventful; exactly how she wants it be. That is until she decides to take a risk and go on a date that leads her to the Gendonelune Royal Academy and directly into the path of Elias Goldstein. As well as her once long lost older brother, Yukiya. She's convinced that this is God's cruel joke on her but it's far too late to turn back now.





	1. Chapter 1

          She stood behind the bar with an expression of seeming indifference as she poured glass after glass for the customers that demanded to be serviced by the attractive barmaid. In truth, the barmaid thought of herself as little more than her job description. A woman who served drinks to the workers who would flood the establishment after a hard day’s work to drown their sorrows. Her raven hair stopped at her shoulders, framing her delicate features in soft waves. Her smile had become a subject of speculation, as so many have fantasized about it but so little have seen it. Rather, they had become much more familiar with the barmaid’s friend. Her friend stood on a chair in a dress decorated with false jewels that hugged her curves in a way that the barmaid chose to avoid. A bright smile decorated her powdered face as she sang a song that had become a pub favorite since the beginning of her employment. A song of a cheating wife that was often thought to be scandalous by the people of good society but tame for the people living on the South End of Gedonelune Town.

         The barmaid’s work slowed as more men became interested in her friend’s song rather than her. She moved closer to her boss, a portly middle aged man with a receding hairline and a greying beard. He reclined on the counter behind him with his arms crossed, giving his barmaid that fatherly smile that he so often bestowed on both of his barmaids.

“Why don’t you dress like Kat, eh? I bet you’d make more tips if you did,” he jokingly suggested, nudging the barmaid with his elbow.

“No interest,” she replied in a quiet voice.

“Let me tell you something. You’re wasting your youth in this place. Toiling your life away to scrounge a few lune. And for what? You ought to be finding yourself a respectable gentleman and be out enjoying yourself, Leila,” his words, while well intended, felt irrelevant to her.

“Respectable gentleman?” she scoffed, “There’s been a shortage of those for quite some time, Mr. Donovan,”

Mr. Donovan slowly nodded in agreement at her words. Even at his age he had to agree that the idea of a respectable gentleman wandering into a pub that’s barely a standard above squalor was unlikely.

“I think I’ll find myself a blacksmith. Yeah, that’s honest work. Respectable enough,” her comment went unheard as Kat’s song came to an end. She made a deep bow to her audience and ran her fingers through her strawberry blonde hair before making her way back to her place behind the bar with their applause echoing behind her.

         The night went on without incident. Much to both the barmaids surprise. They’ve become too accustomed to the fighting that would usually result from too much drinking. Mr. Donovan had come to appreciate Kat’s voice since it provided a pleasant distraction and saved him a small fortune on repairs. However, he had to give Leila credit for her calm disposition and talent with numbers. Day by day, he felt old age creeping upon him when he began to notice that his surroundings were becoming blurrier and even doing the simplest of tasks were beginning to feel like labor. Without Leila’s interference he feels he might have lost his pub to poor business management long ago.

         Leila and Kat exited the establishment, both pulling their coats closer to their bodies to shield themselves from the crisp autumn wind. Mr. Donovan watched them lock the pub from his apartment window on the second floor of the pub. His observation of the two barmaids over the past year were not without purpose. Even now as he watched them leave arm in arm he could feel his conscience tearing in two as he debated which one would inherit his pub after his death. Having no family of his own, he felt it necessary to leave his most prized possession in the hands of someone capable. Kat, always being of good humor with a talent for entertaining, undoubtedly brings the customers that regularly fill his coffers. But when he considers the dedication that Leila put into making sure that the books and inventory were in order he suddenly feels his heart being pulled in two different directions. His pub wouldn’t have flourished without Kat but it was Leila’s management that’s kept them afloat.

         Their walk proceeded as per usual. With Kat going on about whatever was on her mind with Lelia half listening and half paying attention to their surroundings since Kat was far too absorbed in her one sided conversation. The stench of feces permeated throughout the neighborhood. The sounds of the night she grew up with being replaced by the drunk yells from the pubs that continued to stay open, the laughter from the whorehouses that littered the area and the occasional struggle between the homeless for territory. The realities of the city stifled the optimism that she once had; creating a cynic that dedicated her life to her work.  Meanwhile, Kat was a far different story. Being a native of the city she found that there was no other reality than that of the neighborhood she resides in. Her smile often felt about as infectious as her velvety voice that she was hired for. Amongst her many complaints about the standard of living of her friends and neighbors, her biggest complaint was how they’ve simplified her name to Kat. She use to demand they call her by her full name, Ekaterina but that was a battle lost before it even began. Even Leila had fallen into the habit of calling her by her despised nickname. Granted, Kat never bothered to correct her anyway.

         “So tell me, Leila,” Kat spoke up to get her friend’s attention, “Will you be attending the magic competition next Sunday?” Leila lowered his head, knowing very well where this conversation was leading. **  
**

“No. I’ll be busy checking the books at the pub,”

“That’s a waste. I bet if you talked to Cillian he’d give you some spare change to buy yourself a decent dress. Then we could both go and you’d have fun for once in your life!”

“Cillian and I aren’t as close as you think. We’re only friends. If I asked him to buy me a dress I’d feel like I was taking advantage of him,” The thought of spending the day with Cillian caused a small smile to seep through Leila’s stoic expression.

“I saw that! You like him! You couldn’t hide your secret forever!” Kat teased her with an excited smile that expressed the happiness Leila kept on the inside, “Mr and Mrs. Faulkner! I can see it now! The most feared and respected couple in the South End!”

“You’re creating fantasies now. I don’t even know if I want to be with him. I’m still debating whether I should go on a date with him or not. He doesn’t have the best reputation and I’d prefer it if I wasn’t a victim of that reputation,”

          Their walk came to an end when they came to the Boswell residence. A small town-home made of red brick that housed a family of five, with Kat being the eldest of the four children. The building was run down with a door that had become darkened with rotten wood and boarded up windows.

“Here we are,” Leila cut their conversation short by motioning her hand towards the door of Kat’s home.

“Home sweet home,” Kat sighed as she examined the building before turning her attention back to Leila, “Trust me when I say that you should go to the magic competition,”

“On what grounds?” Leila humored her friend.

“You ever here of this thing called Gypsy Magic? Do you know what it is?”

“The greater the payment the more convincing the con?” Leila’s dark joke gave Kat cause to playfully hit her on the shoulder in retaliation.

“If you weren’t my friend I’d break your nose for that comment!” Kat laughed, “No, that isn’t at all what Gypsy Magic is. What it means is that us gypsies have a third eye. A sixth sense. Enhanced intuition–”

“I get it. Continue,” Kat gave Leila a small pout when she was told to finish her theatrical explanation.

“What I am saying is that I have a very good feeling about the magic competition. I think if you and Cillian went together it would do you both well. Maybe begin a relationship, maybe just win a bet! Either way, I feel in my gut that next Sunday is going to be a lucky day for us!”

“If I tell you that I’ll consider going will you drop the matter?” Leila negotiated, too tired to hide her annoyance with Kat.

“That’s all I ask,”

         The Boswell residence, while humble and unimpressive, was considerably nice given the reputable circumstances of the South End of the town. It was a home that Leila aspired to live in if she wasn’t given leave to return back to her home in the country. Her residence was further down the road, right on the cusp of the poor side and the slums.

         Upon first impressions, one wouldn’t expect her be living in such poverty but it was a decision that she made of her own accord when she first arrived into the city. She made the decision to put the welfare of her family before her own long ago. Which lead to her taking up an extra mattress on the filthy floor of a tenement home in order to send majority of her income to her struggling family in the country. But what was truly disheartening to Leila wasn’t that this was her residence. It was that tenement houses were more common than they ought to be. The tenements were erected by the government to help with the rise in population but instead, their efforts turned into one of the most deplorable neighborhoods in Gedonelune Town with sickness and violence running rampant.

          Leila kept her head forward to keep the image of fearlessness when in reality, she nervously fingered the switchblade in her pocket for reassurance that she had some protection at this dangerous time. As she came closer to her residence she heard a whistle from behind her. This wasn’t uncommon, but it was enough to make her quicken her pace. She heard the whistle again, followed by the sound of footsteps coming closer to her. She pulled the switchblade from her pocket, the metal of the blade catching the dim light of streetlamps as she turned on her heel to face her pursuer.

“Touch me and–” her threat was cut off by the sight of a tall man with matching dark brown hair and eyes, “Cillian!” Leila hissed as she returned her switchblade to her pocket.

“Good to see you as well, Leila,” he greeted her with an amused smile, “I’m curious. What did you intend to do with that knife if it wasn’t me who was following you?”

“Whatever I had to do,” Leila grumbled.

“Right. Well, I just came to escort you home but it seems you’ve made it just fine on your own,”

“It’s not the first time I’ve walked home without you. I can manage fine by myself. I don’t need you putting yourself out for me,”

“I’d hardly call it putting myself out. I’d call it being a gentleman,” Leila averted her eyes from him when she felt the butterflies in her stomach flutter when he gave her that charming smile that greeted her upon her first arrival into the city.

           “Allow me to escort you for the rest of your walk,” Cillian asked as he offered his elbow to her, in hopes that Leila would take it. She gave him a loving smile as she took his elbow and moved closer to him to feel the comfort of his warmth.

          Their walk only lasted until the end of the road but it was spent in comfortable silence as they simply enjoyed each other’s company. While Leila enjoyed their time together she could tell that something weighed on Cillian’s mind each time she felt his eyes fall on her. A part of her wanted to ask what it was that plagued him but she kept her concern to herself in fear that what he might tell her might not be something that she wanted to know.

“Leila,” he finally spoke up, “Would you like to attend the magic competition with me next Sunday?” he dropped the question that only about half an hour ago Leila was bothered with.

“I have responsibilities at the pub with Mr. Donovan. You know this,”

“Not entirely true. The pub only opens at night so you aren’t required to be there. I’d like to take you on a date and Kat said that the magic competition would be perfect,” he persisted.

“And you believe Kat with her gypsy magic?” Leila displayed her skepticism, making Cillian laugh.

“No, but I believe she makes a good point saying that taking you to the magic competition would be nice first date. We go, we see some uppity students from the magic Academy compete, have lunch and I have you back at Mr. Donovan’s pub just in time for your work. Now does that sound like a bad idea?” Leila considered it for a second while trying to ignore that nagging feeling of irresponsibility. The way Cillian described their day sounded much more appealing than Kat’s flimsy argument of gypsy magic but a part of Leila didn’t want to take the risk of a failed relationship with a close friend of hers. Kat’s feelings about the magic competition might have been positive but Leila couldn’t erase the weight of uncertainty settling in her stomach.

 

        “No, it doesn’t but–” Leila began.

“One date is all I ask. Just one. After that, if you never want another one then so be it. But at least give me a chance,” Cillian leaned in with his hands gently rubbing her arms. Leila looked down to consider it without having to face Cillian’s anxious expression. When she looked up she had a nervous smile as she nodded in consent to going on a date with him.

“One date, Cillian. Just one,” Leila reminded him.

“Very well. Just one date,” Cillian said while trying to hide his own excitement, “You won’t regret this, Leila Reizen,”

“I better not,” Leila kept her eyes low to avoid showing him how nervous she truly felt.


	2. Chapter 2

         The morning of the magic competition came quicker than Leila had hoped. A week spent in nervous anticipation of her date as she tried to plan it out in her mind to avoid the unpleasantness of spontaneity. The way Cillian had simplified their date to a show and lunch should have brought her comfort. Instead, it only proved to make her all the more nervous when she considered what could go wrong. They could be turned away at admittance, Cillian might not be able to afford lunch after paying for their seats or worse, she could be late for work. She tried to replace those negative thoughts with happier ones as she dressed but even just staring herself in the stained mirror caused her grief. Now she feared that her outfit might be too much. After examining her own chest of clothes, which consisted mostly of dresses in different shades of dark colors, she was strong armed into borrowing one of Kat’s dresses. A light pink satin number with white thread embroidery that exposed more of Leila’s chest than she would have liked. The repairs done to the dress by Kat’s mother made it look almost brand new. After the date Leila would undoubtedly have to return the dress to the Boswell matriarch to be sold again later but at least she would have the privilege of looking beautiful for her date. 

         She stood outside her tenement home with her grey coat hiding her new dress. She nervously played with her hands as she anticipated Cillian to meet her in his usual fashion. With a newsboy cap hiding his messy brown hair and a smile that caused her an unfamiliar comfort she’s come to love. Instead, he surprised her by arriving in a pressed charcoal suit with his hair combed and a toothpick hanging from his lips. Leila waved at him, unable to articulate the mixture of fear and happiness she felt watching him stare at her with an equally romantic expression.

“Leila, you look beautiful today,” He complimented her, examining what could be seen of her dress below the coat, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wear that color. Did you borrow it from Kat?”

“Kat’s mother, to be more exact. I have to return it after today,” Leila corrected him. 

“If you want I could buy it for you. I think that color is very becoming of you,” 

“I appreciate the offer but no,” Leila brushed some strands out of her face, “I’m perfectly happy in my dark colors. This was only for a special occasion,” 

“Then I’m flattered,” he offered his arm to her, “Shall we be on our way then? Wouldn’t want to miss the competition,”

           The couple took their time walking to the Gendonelune Royal Academy. They stayed close together, giving the impression that they were already a couple. Cillian watched Leila’s lips moved as she spoke. There was an undeniable attraction about her from the naturally angry expression that her face seemed to fall into whenever she wasn’t paying attention to the way her almond shaped eyes seemed to light up whenever a laugh escaped her cold exterior. Her tendency to keep to herself turned her into an enigma but that never deterred Cillian from developing feelings for her.

          When they passed the border of the South End of Gendonelune Town they saw the shift from the harsh reality to a fantasy created for postcards and tourists. The buildings stood proudly with fresh coats of paint with pleasant scents of flowers and freshly baked pastries replacing the stenches of the South End. Even the people were of different breeding. They followed each other in clean clothes and smiles so wide as if the world around them was only filled with joy. The couple allowed this aura to consume them, contributing their own smiles to the sea of jolly denizens.

           They followed the masses to the Gendonelune Royal Academy. The Academy stood isolated on an island, connected to the mainland by a long road that was packed with families and couples alike. A wall crafted of stone circled the school with iron gates pulled up to allow everyone in. As Leila passed through the archway she sighed in awe of the grandness of the school. Seeming more like a castle rather a school, the very magnificence of the institution was enough to render her speechless. She put a hand up to her chest to feel the beating of her heart as her eyes scanned over the emerald gardens, the marble building and the feeling of wonder that seemed to infect the crowd. Students in matching blue uniforms stood in the courtyard, watching the crowd progress with similar expressions of excitement that added to the overall atmosphere. 

           Leila turned to face Cillian only catch him staring at her with a small smile that reminded her of the way her father use to look at her mother. It would be natural for him to look away to avoid any awkwardness. Instead, his smile widened as he lifted her hand from his elbow and placed a kiss on the back of her hand. The show of affection reestablished the comfort between them, making Leila feel as if her prior worrying was all for naught. If he was capable of showcasing his feelings then she should feel the same as well. The uneasiness in her stomach soothed as they came closer to the arena that was built in a field closer to the wall surrounding the school.

“Would you like to place a bet?” Cillian asked, pulling his arm away to take a cigarette from his coat pocket. 

“People are gambling at a school competition? They couldn’t place their bets the night before at the pubs?” Leila replied as she fished a box of matches from her coat.

“Evidently not,” He lifted his finger to point at a pair of men standing off the side. One scribbled in a notebook while the man next to him exchanged money with the people passing by, believing that no one was noticing them, “There are the bookies. We should place ours right now before the competition starts,”

“Who’s in the competition? I’d like to know the odds before I put money on someone,”

“Those two Goldstein boys, I know for sure are participating. We were talking about them yesterday at the boxing match. All the men put their money on Klaus Goldstein. He’s suppose to be the best,” 

“You too?”

“Nah. I placed my bet on Randy March. Too many people were betting on Klaus. The bookie would have changed the odds to make a profit. The risk was just as low as the reward. Even if I did win I wouldn’t have won much,”

“Hm,” Leila looked back at the bookies, unsure if she wanted to place a bet or not, “Who’s the second Goldstein playing?”

“I forgot his name. It started with an E,” Leila removed a match and struck it against the side of the small box. She brought the match to light Cillian’s cigarette, “Elias! That was the name! Elias Goldstein!”

“Oh. Then I bet on him,” Leila dropped the match on the concrete and stepped on it.

“Don’t bet on him! If this was a horse race, he’d be the horse with a limp! Compared to everyone else competing, he’s shit!” Cillian reasoned with her before taking a drag from his cigarette.

“All the more reason to bet on him. The higher the risk but the higher the reward,” as Leila placed her matches back in her coat she removed two lune from it and handed it to Cillian, “Put me down for two lune,” 

“Yeah, I can see how much confidence you have in him given how much you’re betting” Cillian rolled his eyes and started his walk towards the bookies with an air of confidence that Leila hadn’t noticed before.

           As she waited for Cillian to return from placing their bets she stared ahead of her, examining the students file into the arena along with the townsfolk. Two students stood at the entrance of the arena taking the admittance fees. Both wore a welcoming smile as they accepted the money and placed them into the collection box. As she followed the crowd she noticed a tall figure standing in the crowd with a scowl very reminiscent of her own. He walked a similar confidence as Cillian but there was a certain air of dignity that surrounded him. As he made his way down the paved path Leila got a closer look at him, catching the way his golden hair complimented his violet eyes. His rounded features gave him a boyish charm that not many men seemed to have.

           The violet eyed boy followed the crowd with the oddest feeling of a pair of eyes watching him. A nagging feeling that caused him to look around him to find the person staring at him. His expression became harsher when he couldn’t find the person but when his eyes met Leila’s gaze the unrest calmed to something unknown to him. The grey hue of her eyes allured him but it was her obvious foreign features that replaced the unrest in his stomach with a nervous fluttering. Their eye contact remained unbroken until he had passed her. When he became in control of his mind again he turned his head to see if she was still staring at him. To his disappointment, he saw her turn away from him and walk towards the field to another man. He watched the man lean down and give her a small kiss on her cheek, breaking his brief fantasy of her.

 _She must be Hinamoto,_ the violet eyed boy thought to himself,  _She had the most beautiful eyes…_

“Prince Elias!” the boy rolled his eyes at unified shrill voices of his fan club. He quickened his pace to avoid having to address them. Only to hear their gushing grow louder at his blatant disinterest.

          Leila returned to Cillian after Elias passed, not bothering to look back in the event that he was still staring at her. A trace of guilt ran through her as she felt Cillian’s tender kiss on her cheek remind her that she was here with him and shouldn’t have had such a moment with a stranger. She masked her guilt with an excited smile as they made their way to admissions but Leila secretly kept searching for the violet eyed boy that had captured her attention. 

_He had the most beautiful eyes…_


	3. Chapter 3

         The mutual melancholy shared between the couple felt replaced by their newfound happiness that neither anticipated from being together for the day. Cillian lead Leila into the arena to seats closer to the field than she thought. Her fears settled when they passed through admittance without being stopped but a new fear arose as soon as she saw her date push through the crowd to get the best seats he could manage.

“You don’t have to be forceful. I’ll be fine in any seat,” Leila assured him while he pulled her by her hand through the crowd as gently as he could without startling her.

“Nonsense,” Her brow furrowed downward at his dismissal of her but rather than arguing she kept quiet and allowed herself to be guided by him.

         The couple found their places at the first row. Much to both Leila and Cillian’s shock but she assumed that was the reason for Cillian’s earlier behavior. As they took their seat Leila examined the open field in the center, noticing the vivid green color of the grass and the streamers of the school’s colors decorating the dark wood of the arena wall. From the corner of her she noticed a few of the students peeking through the curtained opening with excited smiles. A tall student with pink curls threw the curtain back with a wide grin and a stuffed animal sitting on his shoulder. It clapped its paws together before its owner was pulled back.

         After a few minutes of allowing the guests to finish finding their places the sound of trumpets echoed throughout the arena, quieting the crowd. A man of regal bearing appearing walked to the center of the field with a wide grin and a youthful twinkle in his light brown eyes.

“Welcome to the Gendonelune Royal Magic Academy!” he announced in a booming voice that infused the crowd with their previous excitement, “My name is Headmaster Randolph. I, along with my fellow teachers, will be supervising the competition. The rules are as follows: No dirty fighting or cheating. Any underhanded tactics will result in immediate disqualification. The rounds will last for ten minutes unless someone taps out first. Should any actions be taken after the allotted time will result in a major penalization to the competitors’ overall grade. If you lose a round then you are dropped from the competition. If you win a round, then you progress. Finally, this is all good fun. Any serious injury done to your competitor will also result in immediate disqualification and consequences will be faced. Winner will receive a trophy. As well as a boost to their class grade. And bragging rights,” the headmaster’s joke caused a laugh from the audience, “On behalf of everyone at the Academy, we thank you for attending the competition! And we look forward to meeting you at the celebration that will be will held in the auditorium afterwards! Please! Everyone enjoy themselves today!” with that the audience back away into was was presumably the dressing room.

          The dressing room felt claustrophobic with all the competitors packed closely together. Stinking of sweat, the room was stuffy and heated. Elias found himself debating if keeping his jacket on was worth the sweat that soaked through his clothes. Glancing over at his competitor, Luca was already stripping off his jacket to his white shirt. Of course this caused him to get a disapproving glare from Elias’s elder brother but that did little to deter him from violating the school dress code. The indifference in his emerald eyes darkened Klaus’s expression to anger, successfully scaring Elias into deciding it would be better to risk heat stroke than to invoke his brother’s wrath.

“For autumn it sure is fucking hot in here,” he heard his classmate, Joel mumble under his breath. Elias turned to him to see Joel sitting on a bench, his legs pressing against the other lucky competitors who had managed to find a seat early on. He had his head placed in his hands with an expression that showed his obvious annoyance.

“You shouldn’t curse,” Elias chided him. Joel looked up from his hands, directing his annoyance at Elias for having the gall to speak up.

“Well maybe if your brother had done a better job at planning we wouldn’t all be packed here and I wouldn’t have had cause to curse,” Joel provoked in his usual blunt manner.

“Hey! Save it for the competition! We don’t need either of you starting a fight before you even get on the field!” Professor Schuyler interrupted them before Elias could even retaliate, “Anyway, this was Randy’s planning so that should explain it all,”

“Someone say my name?” Randy spoke up from the crowd with a vacancy in his demeanor that caused Luca to let out a laugh.

“I don’t know what everyone’s complaining for. This competition will be over quickly. And when I win, I’ll be celebrating tonight at the after party with a pint and a pretty girl,” Luca confidently bragged, earning himself a eyeroll from everybody in earshot.

“If you don’t get disqualified for cheating first,” Elias’s comment was met with a smug smile from Luca.

         True to Luca’s word, the competition progressed quickly as the weaker competitors were eliminated one after another by the better ones. Each time the crowd erupting in a mixture of cheers and groans at whoever won that round. Elias’s fortitude began to wane throughout the competition as he dispatched with the other competitors in such an easy fashion that the realization that the more difficult challengers were ahead of him prevented him from feeling any semblance of confidence. Every time a faceless student was escorted from the arena a weight dropped to the pits of his stomach. He watched the dressing room empty until it was only him, Luca, Klaus, Randy and Joel. The unlucky few that would rather be doing anything by putting on a show.

         Elias sat on a bench next to Joel with Luca sitting on the bench across from them. They listened to the excited cries from the crowd as the battle between Klaus and Randy raged on, progressively becoming more and more thrilling as the two best students were pitted against each other.

“Hey, Goldstein. Do you think you’ll last long enough to face your brother?” Luca’s question shattered the silence between them. Joel glanced at Elias in great interest, not failing to notice the sudden shift in his classmate.

“What’s it to you?” Elias replied defensively.

“Just curious. You look a bit tired. Might be better for you to give up while you’re still ahead than to face the humiliation of losing to Klaus again. This time on a much larger scale,” Luca could see he struck a nerve when hurt filled Elias’s amethyst eyes.

“Shut it. We don’t want to hear anymore of what you have to say. We’re tired and just want this day to be over with,” Joel’s crass intervention only infuriated Elias’s further, making him feel as if he was a helpless child that couldn’t defend himself.

“I’d rather lose to Klaus than to a waste of talent like you,” Elias spat back venomously with hardened eyes to hide the burning embarrassment that stirred inside him.

“Waste of talent?” Luca leaned back and let out a convincing laugh, “That’s rather subjective now, isn’t it? You may think I’m wasting my talent but I’d say I’m putting it to very good use. You, however. You’ll always be second to Klaus. And if you somehow make it to the last round that fact will only be proven once again when you lose,” Luca moved forward to show the seriousness in what he said, “There’s a reason why you’re the prince and he’s the emperor,”

         The tension between the two boys became so thick that it seemed like the world around them faded away. Joel saw a hatred that burned in both their eyes that he had never seen before. He knew exactly what game Luca was playing and a part of him wanted to laugh that Elias had fallen so easily in his trap if it didn’t seem like they were seconds away from fighting.

“You’re both taking this competition too seriously,” Joel cut through the tension with his unwarranted commentary, “Nobody really cares who wins or who loses. You’re both competing for bragging rights and it’s stupid,”

“Oh really? And for what reason, praytell, are you still here for if not for bragging rights?” Elias directed his anger undeservedly at Joel.

“Because I’ve yet to decide to who I want to lose to. I couldn’t care less about this cheap entertainment.”

         The echoing of the brass bell signaled the end of the fight. Unsurprisingly, they heard Klaus’s name announced as the winner and saw the proud and reddened face of the elder Goldstein brother march through the dressing room with an equally tired Randy trailing behind him. Elias’s hands became slick with sweat as Klaus seated himself right next to him. He glanced over to see the facade of pride fade away when Randy brushed passed him without a second thought.

“Told you I’d win,” Klaus gloated with his arms crossed a smile that contradicted the anger in his eyes.

“You sure did!” Randy turned with what could easily be construed as a sarcastic smile. Seeing Randy’s attitude towards his loss only seemed to annoy Klaus but his emotions became inflamed when he saw the three underclassmen around him lower their heads to hide their laughter.

“What are you three laughing at?!” Klaus snapped, only scaring Elias into silence. He was stuck facing the mockery of Luca and Joel.

“Nothing,” Luca assured Klaus knowing full well that continuing to poke at him wasn’t worth the trouble. Joel turned his amused expression from Elias and Luca to Randy to communicate what they all knew to be true. That Randy had chosen to let Klaus win. Shortly after the crowd had quieted the boisterous voice of the Headmaster made an announcement that the competitors would take a short recess before proceeding to the final rounds.

         Luca and Klaus examined each other, measuring their own strengths and weaknesses to the other. Both entirely convinced that with proper planning they’d progress to the final round. When Elias attempted to analyze Joel for their fight he could only see indifference. The obvious disinterest that surrounded him might have comforted some but Elias could only see the possibilities of what Joel had hidden behind his exterior.

          Elias’s eyes followed Joel as his classmate made his way from the bench to the doorway of the dressing room, turning his head to stare at the younger Goldstein and nodding his head towards the hallway to indicate for the boy to follow him. An unsettling feeling spread from his chest to his stomach at the very notion that Joel would want to speak to him prior to their fight. Nodding in agreement, he looked to Klaus to make sure that his brother’s prying eyes were still appraising Luca.

“I’m going to use the bathroom,” Elias announced as a cover for what his true intentions were. He moved swiftly from the room, ignoring the inquiries coming from behind him and the curious eye lifts that his sudden action garnered.

         The hallway felt spacious without the other students to fill it. Elias followed Joel to the end of the hallway that lead to an open field. He could see the few brave guests willing to risk losing their seats taking walks and enjoying the refreshing cold air of autumn. He noticed Joel standing off the side with his hands in his pockets and stoic expression.

“Crawford,” Elias greeted him as he approached his classmate, somehow managing to hide his suspicion behind a more convincing mask without his brother near him.

“Goldstein,” Joel replied without even doing Elias the courtesy of looking at him, “I feel that I should let you know that I’m planning on throwing the competition,”


	4. Chapter 4

          What was deemed a short recess felt dragged out by the heavy conversation between the two boys. They walked close together, almost giving the impression they were friends if it had not been from the contempt that radiated from the pair. They wandered the school grounds among the other guests that were taking the opportunity to bask in the wonder of the Academy.

“May I ask why you’re planning on throwing the competition? Is this suppose to be a pity victory?” Elias spat with almost as much venom as he directs at Luca.

“Save your inferiority complex for someone who cares. I have my own reasons for letting you win,” There was a slight waver in the tone of Joel’s voice that set aside any assumptions that Elias might have had. Instead, they were replaced with concern for his distant classmate.

“Those reasons being?” Joel stopped in mid tracks and put his hand up to stop Elias. A longing filled his heterochromic eyes as he stared ahead. The beating of his chest became stronger when the small silhouette of his lost love entered his view. There was a bounce in her step and the purest joy in her face as she approached Klaus with her arms stretched wide for a hug. Her cream colored dress fell around her knees in an almost seductive way that caused the boy’s cheeks to turn pink but he gathered his composure and looked away to avoid having to see her kiss the older Goldstein.

          “Lissie Hart? Is she…your reason?” Elias ventured gently, noticing the watering in Joel’s eyes.

“It…It doesn’t matter,” Joel turned away from the couple and faced Elias, “What matters is that I’m telling you now that you’re going to win,”

“Why would you warn me though? That part I don’t understand,”

“Because if I didn’t tell you then you’d put on a show of insecurity and make an absolute arse out of us both. Like you seem to do every time Luca lets you win,” Joel’s words cut straight through Elias without mercy. In retaliation, the blonde haired boy stepped forward with a hardened expression that showed an artificial anger to cover his true feelings of hurt.

“I get angry when someone lets me win because I am perfectly capable of winning on my own merit. I don’t need pity and I don’t need handouts,” Elias hissed through gritted teeth.

“Then it’s a good thing I don’t care enough about you to pity you,”

          Leaving him on that note, Joel turned his back to his classmate and started his walk towards the arena. Elias nervously bit at his lip as his eyes wandered, searching for any distraction from the the already forming feelings of self-doubt. His eyes became fixated on the cool grass beneath his feet, enticing him to come lay down and ignore the world around him. His heartbeat slowed to a calmer pace as he took in slow, deep breaths. Those thoughts that he typically ignores began to resurface the more he replayed the nightmare of facing Klaus in his mind. Those silent cries for help mixed with the feeling of wanting an end what felt like an everlasting punishment.

 _This isn’t the time for that,_  he chided himself,  _But if I lose to Klaus then I’ll only reaffirm that I’m a stain on the Goldstein image…_

         “Excuse us,” a gruff voice woke Elias from his moment of reflection as a couple passed by him, the woman accidentally bumping shoulders with him. She put her hand up to catch herself as she tripped but who he assumed to be her boyfriend caught her.

“I’m sorry!” she chuckled before looking up at Elias. It was her. The Hinamoto girl with grey eyes that caught his attention before the competition. Her smile was polite but there was an undeniable coldness in her presence that he didn’t feel when he first saw her.

“No harm done,” Elias quietly excused her, not entirely shaken from the grip that those dark thoughts seemed to have on him.

          He lingered on her, examining the seemingly familiar shape of her eyes and nose. She stood close to her date with her hand placed firmly on Elias’s bicep as if to purposely keep him at a distance. She stared at him without the shyness or swooning he had come to expect from the girls who had the fortune of meeting him.

“Elias Goldstein,” her voice cut through with the same strength as her presence.

“Y-Yes. That’s me. How do you know my name?” Elias pulled his arm away from her and wiped his slick palms on his pants in the hopes that she wouldn’t catch the nervousness laced in his tone. She glanced at her date with a hidden smile that was showed her amusement with him.

“I’ve just spent the last two hours hearing your name announced repeatedly in the competition,” she chuckled. The logical side of Elias told him that her joke was simply a playful jab but the emotional part quickly consumed him and made him feel as if he was the stupidest person in the school to forget that his name had been announced to an entire crowd of people.

          “Right. That would make sense,” he turned his head away to hide the furious blush on his porcelain cheeks, “I don’t believe that I’ve caught your name though,”

“My name is Cillian Faulkner. And this Leila. My date,” her date answered for her, extending his hand to the embarrassed student. There was a moment of silence in Elias’s mind. As if all his faculties had shut down only to restart at the realization that even the slightest chance with this young woman wasn’t possible.

“Pleasure to meet you both,” Elias shook his hand with such a lack of confidence that he was able to see her amused front melt away into something far more sympathetic of him.

          Leila watched as Elias gathered himself in a way that was almost as convincing as herself. She recognized the subtlety in his movements that gave away the turmoil he felt on the inside. His captivating eyes were decorated with dark circles, he fidgeted with his hands as if he were confused about where they should be and the unmistakable fear that was veiled thinly by a polite mask caused her heart feel heavy. Watching Elias was like watching her former self squirm under a familiar pressure of loneliness and fear.

“Leila? Shouldn’t we be on our way?” Cillian reminded her, pulling her away from her thoughts.

“Of course. We wouldn’t want to lose our seats,” Leila conceded but not before giving Elias an encouraging smile that communicated that she understood his feelings, “I’ll be rooting for you, Mr. Goldstein,”

“You too, Ms…,” he trailed off as soon as he realized that she never told him her last name but the time he had the sense to ask he was already staring at her back as she made her way to the arena.

 _‘You too?’ Could I have sounded any more like a fucking idiot?_ , Elias berated himself. He watched her silhouette move, the grey coat swaying from side to side with every confident stride away from him.

          Leila followed Cillian with a small smile on her face that blatantly showed how she found his intervention between her and Elias a little comical. If not, a bit flattering. Rarely one to show his emotions, she savored every moment he showed his affection for her despite the rumors surrounding him.

“What are you smiling about?” he asked her, hiding his embarrassment with indifference.

“You were jealous,”

“Please!” he rolled his eyes, “The minute you looked at him he turned into a scared little boy. I could never be jealous of that,”

“Of course!” Leila jokingly agreed, “If it makes you feel any better, I could never be interested in that. Scared little boys aren’t really my type,” Cillian stopped in his tracks and turned to Leila with a smirk that was charming enough to cause a pink tint to color her cheeks but not so charming enough for her to put forth all her emotions for him.

“Then what is is your type, Ms. Reizen?” their eyes locked together for the briefest moment before Leila took a step towards him with a smile that enticed him to lean down and kiss her as hes wanted to for the longest time.

“I’ve developed an inclination for fighters,” she lowered her voice so only he could hear, “Cowardice isn’t something I hold in very high regard,” A lull settled between them as Cillian couldn’t find the right words to interrupt this moment. He raised a calloused hand to Leila’s cheek, feeling the softness of her skin against his knuckles and staring into her eyes with the affection of a man who’s already fallen in love. Feeling that same pull towards him, that sliver of doubt wormed its way to the forefront of her thoughts, reminding Leila of exactly why she hasn’t taken that step towards him. She used a smile to cover her concerns and gently grasped his hand to lower it before beginning their walk back to the arena.

          Elias stood with his back pressed against the wall, watching as Luca and Klaus made their way to the center of the arena in equal arrogance and certainty that they would come out victorious. A part of him didn’t want to admit that he was hoping that Luca would win so he wouldn’t have to face his greatest fear: Klaus. Sometimes it felt as if his brother’s presence loomed over him like a dark cloud that kept him from seeing that hopeful light that he’s heard Lissie go on and on about. He glanced to Joel who was peeking through the curtain, obviously searching for Lissie in the crowd of faces.

“What do you see in her?” Elias asked, breaking their silence and causing Joel to turn him in offense that he would even dare ask such a question.

“What do I see in who?”

“I’m not stupid. I saw the way you looked at Miss Hart earlier. I’m only wondering what is that you see in her,” His shoulders slumped in defeat and he casted his eyes downward, hiding the hurt that he buried beneath his icy surface.   
  
“She’s just…so pure…,” He paused to collect his thoughts, unsure of how he could explain his feelings to Elias..

“That’s what Klaus says,” Elias scoffed, instinctively bringing his thumb to his lips and biting at the nail, “It’s hard to believe that someone so ‘pure’ can even exist in this world,”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing,”

“No, I wouldn’t say it’s a bad thing. It’s just…,” he watched as Luca’s silhouette came into his view, his sweat soaked shirt pressing against his toned body and his tousled hair brushing against his emerald eyes. Elias felt a knot tie in his stomach but there was also a warmth that spread through him, making his heart race at the thought of being loved by another. He wondered what it may feel like to have Luca look at him the way he looks at other girls, what it would be like to have his smile reserved for him and what his touch might feel like in the privacy of their dorm rooms. But that residing feeling of doubt clawed its way forward, reminding Elias that he wasn’t worthy of another’s love. Much less Luca’s.

         “Not my type,” Elias finished, successfully biting off a nail and accidentally inhaling it, making him let out a series of chokes and coughs that made Joel look down at him in disdain. The victory bell rang through the arena, letting the crowd know that the match had come to and end and the better student had proven himself to the school.

“And our winner is Klaus Goldstein!” they heard Randolph annouce, shaking Elias to his core now that he knew he would have to face his greatest fear. The crowd erupted in a roar of cheers that their emperor came from the battle victorious. A dejected Luca dragged himself across the field to the dressing room, obvious anger written on his face to cover his humiliating defeat.

“Luca, you did—,”

“I don’t want to hear it, Goldstein. Just leave me alone,” Luca passed Elias, purposely knocking his shoulder into the younger Goldstein and walking ahead without even so much as looking back to see the small flash of hurt in Elias’s eyes.

         “Next up, our contestants are Elias Goldstein and Joel Crawford! This match will decide who gets to face our Prefect in the final battle!” Both boys tensed up when they heard their names being called. Elias walked forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Joel, ready to face the audience with as much artificial confidence as he could muster. 

“You ready, Goldstein?” Joel asked, his eyes set on Lissie who was jumping from her seat and clapping in support of her boyfriend.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,”


End file.
